Regional Communications & Connectivity

Under the Albanese Labor Government, regional Australians still cannot rely on their phone and internet. Yet a phone signal is needed to run a business. To learn. To see a doctor. To stay in touch with family. To stay safe.

Labor has not done the work to fix this.

• No modern phone service rules. The rules that guarantee Australians a basic phone service are called the Universal Service Obligation, or USO. Labor has not brought the USO into the modern age. It still does not cover the way we use phones and the internet today.
• The Mobile Black Spot Program has slowed. Labor has not said what comes next.
• The 3G shutdown was a mess. Many people in the bush now have worse mobile coverage than before.
• Labor’s big new policy is a headline, not a fix. It is called the Universal Outdoor Mobile Obligation. It sounds good. But it will not start until the end of 2027. It has too many loopholes. It will not fix mobile coverage in the bush.

The Nationals will deliver:

• Mandatory domestic roaming. If there is a signal in your area, you will be able to use it. Even if the tower belongs to a rival network. It just makes sense to use the towers we already have.
• Better mobile service for everyone. We will make the telcos lift their daily standards everywhere in Australia.
• Stronger mobile networks. We will boost capacity and service quality where the networks have not kept up. We will also review current funding, including the Mobile Black Spot Program.
• A modern USO. The new rule will set what a service must do, not what tech must be used. Regional Australians will be guaranteed a level of service no matter where they live that meets the needs of modern life. The new USO will cover home phone, home internet, mobile calls and mobile data.
• Better access to Triple Zero. We will roll out text to Triple Zero across the nation, as other countries have done. You will be able to reach help even when your phone can only send a text.